Texas Rangers Blog

Matt Harrison hopes to leave the lefties behind him

ARLINGTON – Matt Harrison officially takes the mound Sunday for the first time since he couldn’t hold a first-inning lead in Game 7 of the World Series.

Time for a little vindication?

Not for Harrison.

“It’s out of my head now,” said Harrison, who allowed two runs after there were two outs in the first inning of Game 7 and ended up as the loser in the deciding game of the World Series. . “It’s been that way since spring training started. I’m just looking forward to pitching a game that actually counts.”

In the games that didn’t count, Harrison certainly pitched like the World Series wasn’t on his mind. He was the Rangers’ most consistent starter in spring training, compiling a 1.69 ERA in 16 innings and walking just two.

He also made big progress on correcting his biggest flaw from a year ago: Attacking left-handed hitters. Harrison allowed lefties a .275 batting average in 2011, compared to .249 for right-handers. As the season wore on, it became clearer he had trouble coming inside effectively on lefties.

In spring, he worked to keep his body more in alignment towards home plate. Lefties went just 4-or-21 against him during the spring and he did not issue a walk. The White Sox are liable to have a pair of lefties – Alejandro De Aza and Adam Dunn – in the lineup Sunday, but they may not offer the best challenge. De Aza has never faced
Harrison; Dunn was 0-for-3 last year.

“I was really only working to one side of the plate,” Harrison said. “I worked on that a lot during the spring. Now, it’s just a matter of applying it when you get in games. ”